Like Father, Like Son
by ForeignMusicLyrics
Summary: Some say that the acorn does not fall far from the tree. However, after the birth of his first son, Zuko is determined to prove this wrong. The young firelord is intent upon not making the same mistakes with his family that Ozai made with his.
1. Chapter 1

He parted the curtain to find his wife lying in bed, the sun streaming through the windows and falling gently upon her face. She cradled a small bundle to her chest, her usually emotionless eyes smiling.

"I'm so sorry I couldn't get here sooner!" Zuko told her, out of breath. "I wish I hadn't missed it, Mai." He approached the bed, his robes flowing behind him. He leaned down to press a kiss to her lips.

"It's okay," she replied, lifting the small child off of her chest, "Zuko, meet our son."

The young firelord's shaking arms extended and gently took the baby boy from his wife, holding him to his chest. He cradled his son's small form delicately, knowing that in his hands was the most precious child in the world. His son was so small, so light, and so amazingly perfect that Zuko could not tear his gaze away. Love of the purest kind filled his heart, making everything seem lighter. Holding the infant in one arm, he reached up with the other hand and softly caressed the soft flesh of his cheek. In his sleep, the newborn wrapped his small, chubby hand around Zuko's index finger. His smile widened as he marveled at the pure innocence in his son's sleeping face.

"Roku," he managed to say. He and Mai had talked about the names beforehand, and agreed that, if it was a boy, they would name him after Zuko's great-grandfather. "So beautiful." The words barely escaped his throat; the emotions had closed it up tightly.

The corners of baby Roku's mouth turned up slightly as he held his father's finger. The sight was enough to nearly bring tears to the new father's eyes. Never before had he seen something as marvelous as his son.

Roku's eyes began to open slowly, and Zuko found himself staring into golden eyes exactly the same as his own. It only lasted momentarily, however, because the baby's eyes scrunched up as he began to cry. His eyes widened, alarmed, wondering if perhaps he had done something wrong. Despite knowing that it was natural for babies to cry when they awake, he still couldn't help but wonder if he had accidentally done something to hurt his son.

Seeing his anxiety, Mai spoke up. "Don't worry, he's just hungry. Here, give him to me." Despite his unwillingness to part with his young son so soon, he handed Roku over to his wife. "I will give him back to you, I promise. He just needs to be fed." A few minutes of breast feeding later, she handed Zuko his son. "Just put him over your shoulder and tap his back gently until he burps," she instructed.

Zuko did as he was told, placing his young son at his shoulder and tenderly patting Ruko's small back. He held his son carefully, making sure that his delicate body met no discomfort. Paternal instinct led to protectiveness flaring up inside of him, and he vowed in that moment to _never_ let _anybody_ hurt his son. When Roku burped, he began crying again. Zuko cradled his son, bouncing slightly and humming a lullaby, urgent to make the cries stop.

Holding his newborn son filled him with such love and joy, and Zuko couldn't help but let his mind wander back to his own father. Had _he_ felt this way when he held Zuko for the first time? _Not likely_, Zuko thought. He loved Roku unconditionally. Even though he had only known his son for a few minutes, he already knew that he would love the boy forever, without reservedness, forever. No matter what Roku did, how much he managed to screw up, Zuko was determined that his son would always have him to turn to, without fear of judgement. He would never have to wonder whether Zuko loved him. He would never have to be the best just to win Zuko's attention. And, most importantly of all, he would _never_ know what it was like to be hurt by his father, whether physically or mentally.

Sometimes Zuko wondered how he could possibly be a good father, having grown up with Ozai. His own father had _hated_ him. He had been altogether _willing_ to kill his own son, just so he could be crowned Firelord! He neglected Zuko, always making him feel like he was a failure, a disgrace. He burned his only son and cast him away, giving him an impossible mission. How could Zuko even hope to be a good father to his son when his own father was so rotten? He didn't have to look farther than Uncle for the answer. Iroh had filled the deep void that Ozai had left. When he banished him, Ozai left a scar not only on Zuko's face, but on his heart as well. Iroh was the one who healed it, the one who taught Zuko all he needed to know.

Zuko stopped humming when Roku ceased crying. His golden eyes looked inquisitively around the room, finally stopping on his father's face. The little boy mirrored his father's smile and reached up to him. His short, stubby arm only managed to reach the left part of his jaw, and Zuko leaned down a little to grant Roku access to the disfigured portion of his face. The smile did not leave Roku's face, even as his chubby fingers felt the burnt, rough skin around his left eye. Childish innocence and curiosity was housed in his eyes, not the pity that Zuko had grown so used seeing.

"I will _never_ do anything like that to you, my son. I will do whatever it takes to make sure you never feel this pain," he told Roku softly. Zuko's free hand again came up to touch the smooth skin of his son's cheek as he pondered his own father. He couldn't imagine_ ever_ looking down at Roku, helpless and begging for mercy before him, and using firebending to mar his son's face... Such a thing was _unfathomable. _

_You will never know the pain I did,_ Zuko thought. _I would go to the ends of the earth just to see you smile. You will_ _**never **know what it's like to be cast aside by your own father. You will **never** know what it feels like for me to not love you. I promise I will always be there for you, my son. You and your mother are the two best things in my life, and I will **always** love you._

"You will never be like him, Zuko," Mai assured him. Knowing exactly what she meant, the new father looked up from his infant son to focus on her, before looking back down to his son's beaming face and up again to hers. Any lingering doubt that he had about being a good father had withered away into nothing the second he laid eyes on his beautiful son. His family was a blessing, and Zuko couldn't imagine _ever_ tearing it apart like his own father had. He loved his family with all of his heart, and then some.

"I know, Mai," he responded, sitting down at her bedside with his infant son cradled in his arms. "I know."

A/N: I hope you liked it! I took some artistic liberty with this, because I am fairly certain Zuko's first child was a girl.

Thank you so much for reading! Please review:) There will be one more chapter, I believe.


	2. Chapter 2

"Dad?"

Zuko looked up from his scrolls upon hearing the familiar timid voice coming from outside his study. He smiled, setting down the paper and scooting his chair backwards from the desk.

"Hey, kiddo. What are you doing out of bed so late?" he questioned, beckoning for his son to come to him. Roku ran into the room and let his father hoist him up onto the desk. The Firelord sat back into his chair, looking expectantly upwards at the little boy.

"I was having nightmares," the six year old replied sadly, and Zuko picked up on almost a little bit of... _shame_ in his son's voice. He was immediately concerned.

"I used to have nightmares all the time. I still do, sometimes. Why don't you tell me what it was about?" he prompted, being sure to put on his best kid gloves.

"I don't wanna," Roku replied, shaking his head sadly, "You won't like them."

"Them? Do they come often?" Zuko replied, somewhat surprised. Roku nodded sadly. How long had his son been having nightmares without his knowledge? _Don't little boys usually tell their parents about bad dreams? _he thought, _Why wouldn't he tell me sooner, especially if it was recurring? _"Buddy, I can only help you if you tell me what happened in the bad dreams," Zuko reminded him, "You're right, I won't like them, but that's because they hurt you and I don't like anything that hurts you."

Roku took a deep breath. "Well, in my dreams... We are usually at some kind of... festival. Our family, I mean. And then... You tell me to stand up and go forward on the stage, because the crowd wants to see a... demonstration from the Prince."

"A firebending demonstration?" Zuko asked, hoping for clarification. When Roku nodded, the Firelord suppressed a curse. He motioned for his son to carry on.

"Well, then... The crowd is telling me to firebend, and you are, and Mom is, but... But I can't do it. I don't know how to do it. And then Ursa and Azula get up, come forward, and do advanced forms perfectly... Even though Ursa's only four and Azula's still a baby."

Zuko smiled sadly, recognizing his young son's fear. He, too, had been inferior at firebending to his sister. As an infant, Azula wouldn't be firebending any time soon, but Ursa had already started lighting things on fire. She was two years Roku's junior, and the boy had yet to create a spark. "Roku, everybody has dreams like that. Whether it's showing up to school without studying for your History test, or forgetting a firebending form—"

"Dad, you don't get it! I didn't _forget_ the form! I never knew it! I don't..." Roku trailed off, closing his eyes against the tears that formed in them.

"Buddy, why don't you tell me what's _really_ on your mind?" Zuko urged.

"I'm not a firebender!" the little boy exclaimed suddenly, "You suspect it, everyone _suspects_, but I _know_! I can feel it, and the friends I have at school that can firebend all tell me that they feel a connection to the fire. They can feel its breath, or something. But I don't feel anything! I'm hopeless and a failure and I've been so scared to tell you. I'm sorry, father. I let you down. And I don't know what you're going to do with me now that you know, but—"

Zuko couldn't take it anymore, and he interrupted. "Roku. Stop. Look at me, okay," he commanded. The scared boy's wild, teary, and terrified eyes managed to meet his father's. "First of all... You don't need to call me father. Dad or Daddy is fine. Father is a very... formal way to address me. Okay?" Zuko had to take care of that issue first, because _he_ himself had called Ozai father, and that was one of the things that he had promised himself to never have Roku do.

"I understand," the little boy replied timidly, his voice barely audible.

"Now... I want to tell you something, okay. Whenever you're feeling sad, or discouraged, or confused, I want you to remember my words alright?"

"Alright," Roku replied, wiping a tear from his eye.

"_I will __**always**__ love you._ I don't care that you aren't a firebender. Please, don't _ever_ think that you've failed me, especially when it comes to things that _aren't under your control!_ You are either born a bender, or you're not. It is in no way your choice. You didn't let me down."

"Really?" Roku replied, his eyes wide. "So you're not going to send me away? I'm not going to be adopted into some earth kingdom family—"

"Whoa there! Slow down, buddy! Who gave you _that_ idea?" Zuko interrupted, shock and concern in his voice. _Maybe you could find a nice earth kingdom family to adopt you!_ His sister's words from so very long ago somehow found their way back to the forefront of his mind.

"There is a boy at school. A lot of the kids are nice to me because they know I'm the Prince, but he takes it the wrong way. He doesn't like me, and he... likes to tell me that."

"You're being bullied?" Zuko questioned, shocked. How much had his son been keeping from him?

"He's not a bully, he just _says_ mean things."

"Roku, bullies don't necessarily have to physically hurt you to be considered a bully. Words can sometimes hurt just as much as a fist. Can you tell me what he tells you?" Zuko prompted.

"He always tells me the things that he hears his parents say. He says that they sometimes talk about me, because a lot of people talk about me. A lot of people suspect that I can't firebend, and people talk about what they think will happen to me when you... Find out," Roku explained softly. Zuko had been afraid of this. He was aware of the many rumors circulating about his sons firebending— or lack thereof. People talked, and their Prince seemed to be a hot topic, more so with every day that passes in which Roku cannot produce fire.

Zuko had consulted his Uncle on the issue last year, when he first began to suspect that his son was not a bender. He had never heard of a non-firebender as Firelord. Iroh had assured him, however, that it was only an unspoken rule. There was no ancient, sacred tradition that said that only a firebender could be Firelord.

"Roku, what do people say they think I will do?" Zuko wondered, almost afraid to hear the answer.

"Well, Han's parents told him a story once. He said that, many generations ago, there was a Firelord whose first born son had no firebending talent. And so... the Firelord held a council with his most trusted advisors. They decided that the boy was a disgrace, and so they sent him away to the Earth Kindgom to be adopted into a family of poor farmers," Roku explained hesitantly.

"Roku, you are my son. I love you so very, very much. Please believe me when I say that I would _never_ hurt you or send you away! I am not sure that that story is anything more than some made up tale. And, even if it was true, I would never let anything hurt you. I would die before I let anyone send you away. Never forget that, okay?" When he was finished, Zuko stood up and picked his son up off the desk, holding the little boy to his chest. Roku clung to his father's body with equal force, so glad that he came to him with this issue. Finally, he had some peace of mind.

"Dad?"

"Mmhmm?"

"I love you."

A/N: I hope that you liked it! There will be one more chapter after this. I had this idea last night, it wasn't a part of the original plan, so now this will be a three chapter thing.

Thanks so much to **The Dark Door, Somariel, shadowwriter01, I Am My Own Biggest Mystery, **and my darling little sister for reviewing! It means a lot!


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